Lee Jae-myung, presidential front runner of the liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), has surpassed the 50 per cent support mark for the first time – a surge analysts attribute to his adept navigation of the political upheaval following former South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol’s impeachment and the resulting fragmentation within the conservative bloc.
Lee also is racing towards a dominant victory in the DPK’s nomination race for the June 3 snap presidential election, having secured around 90 per cent of votes in the first two of four primary rounds. The party is set to officially nominate its candidate on April 27.
The election was triggered by the ousting of former president Yoon, who was removed from office over his controversial December 3 declaration of martial law.
Lee narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential race by just 0.7 percentage points.
The results of a survey by local pollster Real Meter released on Monday showed Lee’s support rising by 1.4 percentage points from the previous week to 50.2 per cent.
His closest competitor, former labour minister Kim Moon-soo of the conservative People Power Party (PPP), garnered 12.2 per cent, up 1.3 points from a week earlier.
